To this point, however, Rockford allows the most goals against in the AHL. It’s true though, too much blame has been placed on the IceHogs blue line for the team’s defensive woes. The goaltending has ranged from average to turn your head away bad. Many times, the IceHogs are their own worst enemy. Trouble usually begins with the zone-exit pass and taking chances instead of just playing it safe and getting the puck deep, leading to turnovers. From there, the defense is in a scramble and the forwards don’t provide much help at times. The defense isn’t as bad as it looks on paper, but it’s not like it’ll produce three or more full-time NHLers either.

However, there is one cant-miss on the IceHogs blue line. He’s still a half season away, but Dylan Olsen is looking like that guy.

Blackhawks fans have longed for a big, mean, shut-down defenseman to eat minutes, kill penalties and take some of the burden off stalwarts Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith.Continue reading »

Join us live at 8pm central for our annual New Years resolution and predictions extravaganza. This show should be Super.

We’ll take a look at why the Blackhawks suck against the Oilers, what’s wrong with Dan Carcillo’s brain… how the Blackhawks don’t seem to care about the brains of Marcus Kruger, Brent Seabrook and others… and we’ll preview the week ahead, including the big matchups Thursday in Philly with the Flyers and back at home Sunday with the Red Wings.

Beer, Bacon & Malort

My good friends over at HockeeNight dot com will be hosting some Red Wings fans this Saturday night, January 7th, at Paddy Long’s in Chicago at 1028 W. Diversey. That, of course, is on the eve of the Red Wings-Blackhawks matchup at United Center the next night. Hmm. Beer, bacon and Malort… don’t mind if I do.

–I’ll have another column running in the Committed Indian this Sunday night.

Both players will continue with their junior teams and likely be called to the Rockford IceHogs if those seasons end before Rockford’s does, which at this point looks like it’ll be on April 14th.Continue reading »

Al Cimaglia of Sirius/XM Radio and MyFoxChicago.com joined me to preview tonight’s Boxing Day Blackhawks-Blue Jackets matchup and to give his take on the Blackhawks, now 35 games into the 2011-12 season.

Its a solid hour of Blackhawks’ talk as we break down what is statistically the best team in the entire National Hockey League at the moment.

Pardon my rust on the controls and our idiot caller.

Click the play button below to listen here in your browser.

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If Rostislav Olesz is upset over residing in Rockford these days, he’s surely not showing his hand.

When asked last week if he was disappointed when he learned the Blackhawks were reassigning him to their American Hockey League affiliate, Olesz described his feelings a different way.

“I wouldn’t say disappointed,” he replied.

“The disappointment was sitting in the stands and watching the game up [with the Blackhawks]. To play six, seven minutes a game is disappointing for a player.”

Olesz does not seem as phased by the demotion as he probably should be. The fact his one-way contract pays him the same no matter where he plays probably has that influence.

During his first three weeks with Rockford, Olesz turned down all media and interview requests, even from the IceHogs. He’s not a very talkative guy. Instead he says he wants to let his play do the talking.

The 26-year old, Czech-born left winger came over to the Blackhawks in the draft day deal that sent defenseman Brian Campbell to the Florida Panthers. Olesz said he learned of the trade on his first day back at home in the Czech Republic.

It was a man-for-man transaction. One ‘bad’ contract for another. In the deal, the Hawks gave themselves cap flexibility but also are now stuck with a player who they don’t have a place for, or know what to do with and they pay roughly half of what Campbell earned.

All along there was one caveat attached to the trade – the Panthers knew they were getting a top-end puck-moving defenseman who could eat a ton of minutes on their inexperienced blue line, while the Blackhawks had no idea what to expect from Olesz.Continue reading »

First off, the Blackhawks have indicated that Brent Seabrook will play tonight in Pittsburgh when Chicago meets the injury-plagued Penguins.

NHL head of discipline Brendan Shanahan suspended Calgary Flames’ winger Rene Bourque two games for his check from behind on Brent Seabrook in Sunday’s game at United Center.

Bourque, a close friend of Seabrook’s, drove the Blackhawks’ defenseman head first into the glass along the boards inside Chicago’s zone with 4:35 remaining in the opening period of a 4-2 Hawks victory.

Seabrook appeared to be momentarily knocked out after his head was driving into the glass just above the boards, the area of the glass with the least give. Seabrook was able to get up under his own power and skate off the ice, but he was ruled out of the game by Blackhawks doctors during the first intermission.

Seabrook has had two known concussion in the past 21 months. The most recent, came on the brutal hit Raffi Torres threw on Seabrook behind the Blackhawks’ net during Game 3 of the 2011 opening round playoff series with Vancouver.Continue reading »

With Opening Night of the 2011-12 NHL season now a mere days away, we called upon an old friend and colleague on tonight’s edition of TheThirdManIn~Radio to get down to some serious Blackhawk puck chatter.

Sam Fels, writer extraordinaire and editor of The Committed Indian – SecondCityHockey.com and blogger at NBCChicago.com’s MadHouse Enforcer joins me to digest the off season and preview this year’s Chicago Blackhawks.

The three of us will be recording the show Monday night starting at 8:15. Since CT & the Forklift are a bit too weird for the mainstream, you’ll need to register for TalkShoe and note that you’re at least 18 to listen.

We’ll be wrapping the Stanley Cup Playoffs, previewing the Blackhawks at this week’s NHL Draft and looking ahead to what the Hawks might do when free agency commences the following week. And I’m sure there will be a bevy of other topics as well, including mid-90’s Rangers’ references, Pierre McGuire appreciation, the dumbest thing written by a Blackhawks’ writer/blogger in the past two months (this could be a whole show), who will be the first NHL player to get out-ed for sending pictures (dongaging?)of their penis to women’s cell phones and finally where did it all go wrong for career of Dave Chyzowski?

If you can’t listen live the show will be posted at Hockeenight.com late Monday night / early Tuesday morning.

I’ll also post the audio here on Tuesday.

For those asking about the next edition of TTMI~Radio…. as the current and reigning Blackhawks’ general manager would say…. We’re right on schedule…. But I don’t have a timetable for our return.

Floating, falling, sweet intoxication!
Touch me, trust me savour each sensation!
Let the dream begin
let your darker side give in
to the power of the music that I write –
the power of the music of the night. – Charles Hart

I’m guessing most Blackhawk fans have never been to a musical – if you haven’t, skip this paragraph and go right to the one where it starts out, “We got a rope, we got a tree, all we need is a referee.” For those of you who have, I’m sure you would agree that the human voice has the uncanny power to evoke emotion sequestered away in the dark recesses of our hearts. If you just spend a moment reading the lyrics to the song Music of the Night from Phantom of the Opera, you’ll discover one of those gems whose worth can never be told. The song actually helped me get over the Blackhawk victory that was snatched away somewhere in the depth’s or Rogers Arena Friday night. While I tossed and turned, reflecting on the “phantom” calls that contributed to our demise, I finally surrendered “to my darkest dreams.”Continue reading »